The Legacy of Ryuukotsusei
by Emanku
Summary: This is the story of the great dragon demon Ryuukotsusei.


The Legacy of Ryuukotsusei

Samuel Fraser

Kimikaia was an honored and respected member of her clan. Among her brethren, she was treated very well indeed. She had great beauty as well as intelligence, strength and many other admirable qualities. After she reached the appropriate age many suitors came to call on her, though she turned them all down in the same courteous and mildly apologetic fashion. The rejections would often be surprising and Kimikaia's father soon became distressed at their frequency. Pickings were slim among the dragon demon community, for not many of the titanic creatures could live together without wreaking havoc on the environment.

Things finally changed when the panther demons attacked. The peace-loving dragon demons tried to avoid the coming onslaught but they could not travel quickly enough. Most of the panther demons were little more than a nuisance, but their leader was as large as many of the dragon demons, and even stronger. In formation with his four strongest warriors, the brute seemed unstoppable.

On one dark day, Kimikaia was caught in a raging mudslide that swept her away from friends and family. Only one young male of the group dared to follow, though he knew it put him in great danger. If was very fortunate for Kimikaia, who was dumped right in the middle of the panther demons' camp. Their leader struck at her but the young male, Ghati came to her aid. Somehow, his fierce lightning attacks managed to repel the great cat demon. He pressed home the attack, driving the panthers back into their Western lands and out of the North. As for Kimikaia, she had finally found who she wanted to be with.

Ghati was hailed for his victory and was even made the new leader of the dragon demon clan. He and his new bride turned out to be natural leaders. They ruled over their people with a wisdom that was spoken of as far as the most Southern parts. For centuries they were the ideal monarchs, like something out of a storybook. The dragon demons reached a new level of prosperity and tranquility. The golden age of the North was during the time of Ghati and Kimikaia.

Their civilization rejoiced at the birth of their leaders' first child. It was a boy and they named him Ryuukotsusei. All believed that the child was the beacon of hope that the dragon demons' greatness would continue on for another generation.

When Ryuukotsusei was only five years old, the panther demons decided to take revenge for their past defeat. They mobilized their armies and rallied under the banner of their powerful leader and his young but almost equally strong son. Ghati and Kimikaia went alone into battle against the hordes of enemies. They would not let any of their followers endanger themselves for a matter that was for them to settle.

The battle was long and intense. Countless panther demons were wiped out but after many days, none of the six true threats had been defeated. Finally, the panther leader and his son made a sudden, radical offensive. The two of them cornered and overwhelmed Kimikaia. Filled with rage, Ghati attacked the panther leader with every ounce of strength he had and soon killed him. However, the cost was great. Ghati was greatly wounded to a point that he would never be as he once was.

The panther leader's son was not as vengeful as his old man. He was crafty and devious. He pulled back his minions to regroup back at their homeland. They would recover their strength and attack the East instead.

Dragon demons rushed to help their injured leader and bury his slain wife. It soon became apparent that Ghati's wounds were even more serious than his people had imagined. With his final attack, he had snapped his spinal column, paralyzing him completely. He mourned for Kimikaia for eleven days and on the twelfth day reassumed his position as leader of the clan. His wisdom still guided the dragon demons well, but his authority dwindled with his inability to tend to royal duties such as leading any military action.

Care of Ryuukotsusei passed to Ghati's older brother, Fashuganen, who was wickedly jealous of his sibling. Fashuganen raised the young dragon demon earnestly, all the while filling his heart and mind with darkness. Ryuukotsusei grew up believing that his mother had meant nothing to Ghati and that his father's rule was corrupt. The youth believed his own people had thrust his defenseless mother into the heat of battle and let her be shredded by the panthers. He was told that they had all laughed as she died.

Ryuukotsusei trained harder in the art of combat than any of his fellow dragon demons. His hide grew thicker than theirs and his blasts became stronger. As his abilities grew, so did his size. When he had finally reached adulthood, many decades after the incident with the panthers, he was twice the size of any other dragon demon and five times as powerful.

"I have trained you well," Fashuganen told his apprentice. "You are now strong enough to take revenge on Ghati for mistreating and killing your mother. Tell me, when and how are you going to do it? I'm sure you have something planned."

"Of course," Ryuukotsusei replied in his deep, overpowering voice. "I've been planning it for many years. Though you needn't be concerned with the details for you won't be around to witness it."

"What do you mean, Ryuukotsusei?"

"You have trained me well, remember? I was taught to seek vengeance over all else. I was taught to rule with an iron fist."

"Yes . . ."

"I was also taught to never leave a potential threat alive. And right now, dear uncle, the only real threat around here is you!"

With that, Ryuukotsusei dug a clawed foot into the old dragon demon's heart. Fashuganen writhed in agony and tried to scream but his nephew's other foot had wrapped around his windpipe. He fell victim to his own evil in the end and it ended his life horribly.

Ryuukotsusei left his dead relative and returned to his father's household where he was immediately questioned by two bodyguards.

"Why have you come hear with the stench of blood? Isn't that the scent of Fashuganen?"

"You must listen," Ryuukotsusei pleaded, "My uncle had a devious plot to use me to murder my father. He was jealous of my father's position and has been planning to seize power for years. When I learned of it I confronted him and he attacked me. I injured him, but couldn't finish him off. He is fleeing South. Hurry!"

The two guards began a fast crawl away to go catch the fiend. Their admiration and loyalty to Ghati spurred them on with a terrible hatred.

"I'll deal with the two of you later. I want to savor this moment alone with my dear papa," Ryuukotsusei whispered to himself.

The giant dragon demon crawled over to his paralyzed father. Ghati could see him and had heard what had been going on.

"Tha . . . thank you, my son . . ." he said quietly. "I never knew you were that loyal to me. How I wish the panthers hadn't paralyzed me so I could have raised you myself. If you mother was still alive . . ."

Ryuukotsusei's hate-filled stare silenced Ghati's speech. He had been waiting for this moment and he wouldn't let the sentiments of an old man get in the way.

"Goodbye, Father!" he cried suddenly and lunged forward.

Ghati tried to speak but his muzzle was clamped shut by his son's powerful claws. Blood trickled out from between his lips.

"I hope that hurts, you bastard! Fashuganen has told me all of what happened to my mother. You and the other dragon demons laughed as she was torn apart by the cats. My uncle died first, for I know he enjoyed watching her pain. The darkness in him was unmistakable. You're next. You used her for pleasure and nothing more. You never raised me because I was never wanted. I've lived under your dominion for too long. After I'm done here, I'll kill the rest of clan. They don't stand a chance against me. I'll have my vengeance before the sun has set."

Ryuukotsusei opened his mouth and let his energy gather into a mighty blast. Power radiated from him and a dark pleasure filled his eyes.

"Scream with all your might," Ryuukotsusei commanded as he took a step back and released his father's mouth.

Ghati looked sadly at his son and said, "I'm sorry."

The lightning blast fired, rocking the valley and echoing for miles. Ghati's corpse fell limply to the ground, his charred head crumbling into dust as it hit.

Not exactly the climactic moment of triumph Ryuukotsusei had been planning. But now his plan had gone too far. Already the dragon demons were gathering. Already, Ryuukotsusei had been filled with adrenaline at the thrill of revenge. He didn't even think about his fathers' last words, only what he would do to his brethren when they arrived.

They did come. All of the dragon demons of the North rushed to the aid of their leader when they hear the attack. All of them, one by one, met similar fates. As he had sworn, before the sun went down, Ryuukotsusei was the last of his kind. In one day he had obliterated his entire race. Blood stained the ground and covered the dragon demon from head to tail.

At last the wretch stopped to think about his actions. He had slaughtered over a hundred of his people. Many of them too young or too weak to even defend themselves. Ghati's last words haunted him. Ryuukotsusei felt an immeasurable level of grief and loss. He fled to an abandoned mountain cavern to think.

Ryuukotsusei stayed in that cave for years upon years, mourning for the loss of his people and cursing himself all the while. The dragon demon eventually came upon a decision. He promised himself that he would fight until either he had been killed or there was nothing left for him to kill.

He decided that the logical place to start would be the home of the panther demons. They had a powerful leader, but it was not just that. Ryuukotsusei still longed to take revenge on his mother's killer. It had not been his people, he had come to that conclusion. It was the great panther demon and his son. The last of the dragon demons set out on his mission.

When he got to the Western lands, Ryuukotsusei learned that his vengeance had been denied him. The panther leader had been slain by the leader of the dog demon tribe. An infuriated Ryuukotsusei ploughed across the rugged countryside until he reached the lands of the East where the dog demons reigned.

The dragon demon captured every dog demon he came across and sent them out with his challenge of combat with their leader. Before long, the leader of the dog demon tribe confronted Ryuukotsusei, brandishing three swords: Tessaiga, Tenseiga and Souunga.

Ryuukotsusei was the first to strike, but he was amazed at the ease his attacks were warded off. Even masses of his own people could not withstand such power, but this dog demon was parrying every blow. The battle became more intense. Ryuukotsusei's thick hide and lightning almost matched the power of the dog demon's three swords.

The battle between the two great powers raged on for days as rain fell from the sky and dark clouds swirled overhead. The tables turned when the dog demon sheathed his swords and transformed into his dog form. He was large and coursing with power yet it was still not enough to conquer Ryuukotsusei.

In a last, desperate act, the dog demon stabbed Ryuukotsusei with a claw just above his heart. The dragon demon had almost no power left and the attack had one, devastating effect that he could never have predicted: it trapped him. He was sealed into dormancy by the claw. It prevented him from moving or seeing and slowed down his regeneration greatly. All Ryuukotsusei could do was think in dark silence.

More than fifty years after that battle, a demon puppet controlled by the terrible Naraku destroyed the claw trapping Ryuukotsusei in dormancy. The dragon demon slowly came to full consciousness and burst out of the cliff that had grown around him.

Inuyasha, the half-breed son of the old dog demon was there to greet his awakening. The cocky half demon stood far below Ryuukotsusei, wielding the Tessaiga awkwardly. Ryuukotsusei couldn't help but laugh at him.

Inuyasha was anxious to fight. Ryuukotsusei was somewhat hesitant, being at only about one tenth his normal strength, but he decided that if he died in the battle, it wouldn't matter. The battle that ensued was definitively one-sided. After destroying Naraku's demon puppet, Ryuukotsusei toyed with the half demon, as he appeared to present no threat whatsoever.

At one point in the clash, though, Inuyasha lost hold of the Tessaiga. He seemed about to be destroyed by his enemy's lightning attack when he transformed. The blood in his veins changed to pure demon blood. Ryuukotsusei was rightly alarmed by the change as the new Inuyasha quickly got an advantage over him. Inuyasha tore through Ryuukotsusei's thick skin, inflicting blow after blow.

Surprisingly, though, Inuyasha was only doing that to get Ryuukotsusei off his sword, which had been caught under the demon dragon's belly. Once he took hold of the hilt, he reverted back to his normal, half-breed form. It seemed that Ryuukotsusei would be victorious after all but something had changed. Inuyasha no longer used the Tessaiga clumsily, but with ease and finesse. It took an effort to stave off his attacks and the demon dragon was even afraid when he was faced with the familiar wind scar attack.

Yet he prevailed, and withstood the blast without too much difficulty. Ryuukotsusei pushed forward his attack, wanting to end the battle swiftly. He charged all his power for one last lighting blast that would wipe out the half-breed.

Then the most remarkable thing happened: Inuyasha used the dreaded Bakuryuuha backlash wave. It took control of the lighting attack and sent it right back at Ryuukotsusei with added force.

_So this is how it ends,_ Ryuukotsusei though to himself as he felt his body being shredded by the attack. _I'm sorry for my actions, Mother . . . Father . . . I wiped out our entire race for nothing. Forgive me._

With that, Ryuukotsusei was no more. The Bakuryuuha had spliced the dragon demon into thousands of pieces. It was the end of a legacy laced with tragedy, while being only a small part of another's legacy.


End file.
